Home / Monica Witt: Former US counterintelligence officer charged with spying for Iran

Monica Witt: Former US counterintelligence officer charged with spying for Iran

February 14, 2019 | Brainwave Science

SITUATION

A former US Air Force special agent and counterintelligence specialist, Monica Elfriede Witt, has been accused of delivering classified defense information to the Iranian government that helped Tehran target her US counterintelligence officers.

Monica Witt, aged 39, was a cryptologist and a counter-intelligence analyst for the United States Air Force for more than 10 years before working as an intelligence analyst for the defense contractor Booz Allen Hamilton for five months in 2008 and doing some other private sector work.

John Demers, assistant attorney general for national Security, said, “It is a sad day for America when one of its citizens betrays our country.”

According to John Demers, Iran Intelligence agency recruited Witt as part of a program that targets former intelligence officers who have held security clearances. She is alleged to have revealed classified information about the existence of a top-secret US intelligence program to the Iranian government and further provided true identity of US intelligence officers. Four Iranian hackers who were also charged in the indictment reportedly targeted Witt’s co-workers in the US intelligence community with a malware in order to gain access to their system. Federal prosecutors believe these hackers must have gain necessary information from Witt and were working on behalf of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), an elite military and security force.

Witt wrote to an Iranian contact she was “endeavoring to put the training I received to good use instead of evil. Thanks for giving me the opportunity.”

The US government issued an arrest warrant for Witt, who remains at large. US official believed she is still in Iran. Witt is charged with espionage, conspiracy and other crimes. According to prosecutors, Witt had been granted the highest level of US Security clearance. In a charging document, investigators say the US deployed the 39-year-old to various locations in the Middle East to conduct classified counterintelligence operation. Previously FBI issued missing persons poster stating Witt was working as an English teacher in either Afghanistan or Tajikistan.

CHALLENGE

Last November, US President Donald Trump re-imposed all sanctions on Iran that has been suspended due to the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) nuclear agreement. The 1979 Iranian Revolution has created diplomatic fault line between Iran and Western countries especially US and Iran that continue to this day.

The US government had designated Iran a “State Sponsor of Global Terrorism” in 1984, originally for its support for terrorist groups like Hezbollah and others militant groups. Former President George W Bush names Iran as part of an “Axis of Evil” along with North Korea and Iraq. Recently Iranian President, Hassan Rouhani, told President Trump to stop threatening Iran “or else you’ll regret it.” Both the countries are at differ, recognizing each other as a national security threat.

Monica Witt’s espionage case come on the eve of a US-led Middle East Security summit in Warsaw. The two-day conference will cover issues such as “peace and security” including the wars in Syria and Yemen. Witt’s change in allegiance could be the biggest challenge for United States government and law enforcement. FBI still believe Witt remains a threat to US National Securityuntil she is arrested.

Espionage cases especially through hacking has turned into a nightmare for law enforcement agencies around the globe. These cases are now more common and much complex to investigate as it is impractical to retrace digital footprints and hackers’ physical existence isn’t mandatory. It is understood that a single leaked classified defense information can cause unimaginable loss to a National Security.

According to US Intelligence Community, The Islamic Republic of Iran presents an “increasingly sophisticated” Cyber espionage threat to the United States and its allies. According to experts, Iranian hacker are daily targeting US government officials, government organization and companies in order to gain confidential information. US defense become more vulnerable when a former counterintelligence agent with the highest clearance support Iran in achieving “Death to America” agenda. National Security personnel consider Iran as a bigger threat to US than ISIS or Al-Qaida. It is understood that for eliminating espionage, precise intelligence is required at the right time. In this case, FBI were aware about the Iranian intelligence interest to recruit Witt beforehand and when Witt showed the fight clue about a change in allegiance. If the existing conventional investigative tools preferred by law enforcementpersonnel was used on Witt at the above mention moment, it would not reveal what information the perpetrator like Witt possess and trying to conceal from the investigator.

Witt’s case demonstrates exactly why United States government and counter-intelligenceagencies desperately need to consider for an alternative method or process to gather accurate intelligence from their top officials on a regular basis and identify the potential spy from innocent within a record-breaking time. In order to protect a nation’s confidential information and law enforcementpersonnel, a non-intrusive, affordable and efficient technology with virtually perfect accuracy is really needed by the US government before it’s too late to act. It’s better to be safe than sorry because once the highest clearance official reveals a top-secret information to public or enemy then it became extremely hard to protect the boundaries.

Brainwave Science has unveiled the most revolutionary technology of this century that empowers law enforcement personnel to determine who the spy is, by matching crime-related information from an infallible witness-the human brain with over 99% accuracy without necessity of physical evidence and it’s called iCognative. This technology is perfect weaponry for the US and its allies to protect themselves from recurring espionage. iCognativecan not only identify a double agent or enemy spy from innocent but also provide accurate and reliable intelligence from a suspect’s brain to support law enforcement personnel retrieve what information was shared, how it was shared and how they were contacted before the enemy could act.

iCognative can be a game-changing approach for national securityagencies, especially when illegal intelligence gathering has become a constant threat. This technology recognizes the vital difference between the spy and an innocent through the recognition of a specific crime-related information stored in their brain. US and its allies can utilize iCognativetechnology to protect themselves from future threats through espionage. In this case, all the necessary crime-related information could be accessible and verified with almost perfect accuracy once a 45-minutes iCognative test is conducted by law enforcement personnel on Witt’s colleagues and other ME assigned US intelligence officers. Information such as: what information Witt was aware of, how she came in contact with Iranian intelligence, method of communication, who was the Iranian contact, motive behind the transformation, last known location of Witt, any accomplice involved, etc., would be easily available to national security personnel to investigate this case in the right direction and protect other related information such as identity of other US intelligence officers in a foreign location before their life is at risk.

An assigned investigator uploads all the investigative details related to this and other espionage cases into the iCognative system protocol. The system records and analyzes the brain responses when case related known and confidential information (together called Stimuli) is flashed to the suspects on a digital screen in the forms of pictures, phrases or words and determine with over 99% accuracy what information they possess and trying to conceal from the investigator. iCognative technology provides scientific and legal means for law enforcement personnel to tap inside the human brain and reveal specific crime-related information without any possibility of error.

Brainwave Science’siCognative is a cost effective and trusted technique investigative tool that guarantees positive results in such complex cases, identify the potential spy before they become a threat and tend to minimize loss after a cyber-attack by providing security agencies enough time to rectify the shared information before it’s too late.